The invention relates to preparation of tax returns. Accountants and tax professionals have utilized financial management and tax preparation programs to manage finances and tax matters for their clients. For example, accountants and tax professionals utilize financial management programs such as QuickBooks® and tax preparation programs such as Lacerte®, ProSeries®, TurboTax® ProLine™ Tax On-Line, available from Intuit Inc. and other programs including, for example, programs available from Thomson Reuters, CCH and Drake Software. QuickBooks®, Lacerte®, ProSeries® and TurboTax® are registered trademarks of Intuit Inc. as well as financial management and tax preparation programs available from other sources. While these and other financial management and tax preparation programs have been used effectively in the past, accountants often have difficulty tracking the status of matters such as tax returns.
For example, an accountant receives many calls from clients about their tax returns throughout the day. Sometimes the accountant is at his or her computer such that the accountant can accept the call, use the computer and tax preparation program to open the tax return of the client who called to review the tax return and answer the client's question. At other times, the accountant is away from his or her desk, e.g., the accountant may be out to lunch, at a meeting, traveling, etc. In these cases, the accountant is not seated at the desk and cannot utilize the computer and tax preparation program to access the tax return of the client who called. Consequently, when away from the computer, the accountant may not be able to accept client calls or if calls are accepted, may be required to advise the client that the client must wait for the accountant to return to the office or guess as to an answer to the client's question. Thus, the client may not receive an acceptable answer and may have to wait hours or days for an answer. This can be frustrating, inconvenient and problematic as tax return filing deadlines approach.
These shortcomings ultimately result in diminished or lack of responsiveness and a decline in customer service to the client and are due in part to the limited resources and capabilities of accountants, particularly during tax season, limited access to tax preparation programs and tax returns prepared thereby since accountants have access to tax preparation programs, which can be costly (particularly professional programs purchased by accountants) and, therefore, are not purchased or accessed by clients, and the need in many cases for specialized tax and accounting knowledge to prepare a tax return. Thus, even if the client has purchased a tax preparation program and can access the tax return, the client may not even know where to search for an answer since tax returns can be complex. These and other factors have resulted in clients relying on accountants for tax return information and direct accountant-client communications, thereby resulting in clients having difficulties acquiring information about their tax returns since they are forced to rely on another person and the program utilized to prepare the return may not even be available to the client.